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Bisons drop a see-saw affair

The Buffalo Bisons trailed the first-place Rochester Red Wings twice and came back Thursday. They weren’t able to do so a third time.

After the Bisons tied the game at three in the top of the seventh, Jorge Polanco’s RBI single off Scott Copeland gave the Red Wings a 4-3 lead, which was the final score at Frontier Field.

Matt Hague, the International League leader in batting average and hits, flied out to center field with two outs and runners on first and third in the ninth to end the game.

The Red Wings took two of the three games in the series. The Herd went 4-3 over their seven-game road trip – their first four-win road trip since May 18-24.

Pitchers of record: Rochester’sAaron Thompson relieved starter Tyler Duffey after Polanco’s error at shortstop allowed the Bisons to tie the game at three. Thompson recorded the final out with runners on first and second base to escape the inning. Polanco redeemed himself with the eventual game-winning hit in the bottom half of the inning, so Thompson earned his first win in his first appearance since the Minnesota Twins sent him down to Triple-A. Copeland (5-3) lost his first game as Bison since June 29, allowing four runs in 6∑ innings. A.J. Achter recorded his 14th save for Rochester.

The big flys: Buffalo’s Jonathan Diaz hit a two-run home run in the fifth to give the Bisons a 2-1 lead. The Red Wings’ Oswaldo Arcia answered with a two-run home run in the sixth to give Rochester a 3-2 lead.

Paid Attendance: 3,845.

Records: Buffalo (43-45), Rochester (47-40).

Blue Jays Weekend: As a part of the festivities, Mookie Wilson, who won the World Series with the New York Mets in 1986, and Cecil Fielder, a three-time major league All-Star and 1996 World Champion with the New York Yankees, will be signing autographs at both Saturday’s 7:05 p.m. game and Sunday’s 1:05 p.m. start.

What’s next: The Bisons return home to begin a three-game series with the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders this weekend. The first game is Friday at 7:05 at Coca-Cola Field (Radio 1520 AM) with Buffalo’s Randy Wolf (5-1, 2.76) against Esmil Rogers (0-0, 4.63). Wolf and Rogers faced one another Sunday at Scranton. Neither recorded a decision as Wolf allowed one run in five innings and Rogers allowed four runs (two earned) in four innings.